1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a magazine holding structure and a library device having the same in which a degree that a magazine is extracted is stepwise controlled.
2. Description of the Related Art
A tape library device or a disk library device is commonly used to store program or data used in a computer with high reliability.
Typically, a library device includes a member called a magazine which accommodates a plurality of cartridges (for example, a storage medium or one which a magnetic tape and a reel are integrated in case of a tape library device) and a conveyor device called an accessor.
The inside of the magazine is divided into a plurality of cells which each can accommodate one cartridge respectively.
The accessor performs an operation which extracts a cartridge accommodated in a certain cell of a certain magazine and sets the cartridge to a drive device and an operation which accommodates a cartridge extracted from a drive device in a certain cell of a certain magazine.
In such a tape library device, when exchanging or loading cartridges into some cells in a magazine, the cartridges can be taken out of or inserted into the cells by extracting a magazine up to the cells. Also, since the whole magazine can be extracted from the device, a magazine can be taken out of a device or another magazine can be loaded into the device.
A technique for extracting a magazine from a library device is disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 10-255372.
In JP-A No. 10-255372, a tray (magazine) is stepwise opened (extracted) by setting a mode for fully opening a tray and a mail slot mode for opening a tray up to a medium position.